Raynham police shoot, kill 35-year-old man

Raynham police shot and killed a 35-year-old man Tuesday afternoon in his apartment after he pointed a loaded handgun at the officers, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn said.

Quinn said at a press conference that Stephen Maclean was in the doorway of his King Philip Street apartment when he allegedly pointed a “21-round magazine” firearm at officers. The DA said one officer fired a taser and two officers fired their guns at Maclean.

Maclean died shortly after arriving at a local hospital, Quinn said.

The officers who responded had their body cameras on and recording, Quinn said, which provided footage that “briefly” shows Maclean pointing a gun at the officers.

“This happened very, very quickly,” Quinn said. “We just watched the footage, so it appears one officer discharged a taser in an attempt to potentially disarm him but all of a sudden there is a gun being pointed at them, and they responded to defend their lives.”

Quinn said officers responded to Maclean’s apartment Tuesday after his girlfriend called to report him acting erratically and aggressively. She also told police that Maclean was fired from his job after he went to work intoxicated that morning.

“This has just happened several hours ago,” Quinn said. “We want to have careful reviews of these cases, but this is an individual who without any justification from what we know at this point, opened the door and pulled a firearm on four officers lawfully doing their job.”

Raynham Chief of Police David LaPlante said at the press conference that there’s no danger to the public.

“This is not a day that any officer hopes will come,” LaPlante said. “This was a very dangerous incident where our officers had a firearm pointed at them by an armed individual. Our officers responded consistent with their training and rendered emergency medical aid to the suspect until paramedics arrived.”

Maclean, who Quinn described as engaging in “belligerent behavior” leading up to his death, was arrested Monday for witness intimidation and disorderly conduct related to a court case where his girlfriend is the defendant.

Maclean’s girlfriend Alison O’Leary allegedly tried to hit their neighbors with her car last summer during a dispute, and there was a court event on Monday. According to court documents, Maclean was arrested after he went to his neighbor’s apartment, drunk and banging on the doors, apparently looking to fight.

Police went to Maclean’s apartment Monday, where he at first resisted arrest, but was taken into custody without incident, according to court records. Maclean pleaded not guilty to both charges, and the court released him on personal recognizance.

Quinn said the investigation by state police detectives and prosecutors is ongoing.